Zeus
The King of the Gods, Zeus both loves and hates being King. He is a good leader in times of crisis but the everyday minutiae and politics bore him. Having lost his first wife to the treachery of the Titans, Zeus tries to dim his pain with neverending wine and womanizing. Zeus is a loving father to his children and takes great pride in their accomplishments but he's a horrible role model and never took his responsibilities as a father seriously. History Early History As the Titans' influence and power grew, as mortals began to spread their legend across the land, the Titans no longer wished to spend time among the mortals and wished to dwell in the 'Haven', the impressive transdimensional residence and research station that Ouranos and Gaia had built for themselves atop Mt. Othrys. So to this end, the Titan Rhea discovered a way to extract the essence of the most powerful Titan, Kronos, and bestow that essence upon six of Kronos' most loyal mortal followers: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Hades, and Hestia. As a talented storyteller and orator that had amused Kronos, Zeus was given the gift of charm and charisma so that mortals would gather around him to hear him weave tales of the Titans. In a sense, these six were now Kronos and Rhea's children and though unrelated in their mortal life, they were spiritual siblings, connected by the essence of their 'father'. These six were sent out to further the legend of the Titans and to handle the Titans' interest in the mortal world, leaving the Titans able to spend more time in their Haven on Othrys. However, one by one, the six began to realize that their physical existence and metaphysical empowerment gave them potential that exceeded the Titans' own power. The first to realize this was Hestia and when she shared her findings, she was imprisoned in Tartarus, the dimensional prison that held Gaia. Hades and Demeter followed suit, as did Poseidon and Hera, until the youngest and least among the six, Zeus was the last remaining of Kronos and Rhea's stewards. Fearing that Zeus would likewise rebel and knowing that Zeus had a tendency to think with his loins more than his brains, Kronos gave Zeus a wife to help ensure his loyalty. The wife Zeus was given was Kronos' daughter, Metis. The pairing worked for a time until Metis became pregnant, something that did not happen among Titans (as they created beings through willing a new being into existence alone). Realizing that Zeus' physiology was too dangerous, Kronos had not only Zeus imprisoned, but also the pregnant Metis (as Kronos feared that the child of such a coupling would be even more powerful than the original six stewards of Othrys). But Kronos did not count on Rhea's curiosity. Eager to see how her experiment would play out, Rhea had tricked Kronos into locking up a conjured up look-a-like of Zeus of her own creation. Furthermore, Rhea had even warned Zeus of Kronos' intentions and gave Zeus time to flee. Settling on a remote island, Zeus trained in secret, intent on rescuing his wife and child from their prison. But as Zeus grew more powerful, he still felt he was too weak to do this alone. He needed allies. In his efforts to recruit more to his cause, Zeus used the powers of persuasion and charm that he had made him an effective steward, able to spread the Titans' legend. In so doing, Zeus not only made allies, but lovers as well. When Zeus' escapades starting producing more children and those children began displaying powers of their own, rumors began to grow of a new being in the land which might one day overthrow Kronos. As Kronos' legend began to wane from a lack of stewards spreading his tale, Zeus discovered that he too was made more powerful as his own legend increased. So, again, Zeus used his powers of oration and storytelling to spread his own legend, disguising himself to hide his identity as he did so and discovering a knack for the art of disguise that began to develop into more overt shapeshifting as his powers grew. When Zeus' powers had grown able to rival a Titan's, Zeus decided to make a strategic strike against the Titans. Leading his children and some key allies in a raid, Zeus broke into Tartarus and freed his spirit brothers and sisters, and for the first time, met his daughter Athena. But Zeus likewise discovered that his first wife, Metis, was unable to leave Tartarus due to her Titan physiology having bound her to the prison dimension's reality and was unable to exist in Earth's own reality. They had planned to free Gaia as well, but Metis insisted they should not do that. After the prison break, Zeus had a powerful force to rival the Titans. He tasked his spirit siblings to aid him in furthering their own legends. Poseidon sailed across the sea to spread the tale to the island tribes, Demeter worked the farming communities, and Zeus himself used his powers of shapeshifting to infiltrate the larger settlements in the heart of the Titans' realm with Hera tagging along to aid him should he be discovered. Meanwhile, Hestia trained Zeus' children, preparing them for the war that was soon to come while Hades used the abilities given to him by Kronos to use as his spymaster to become invisible and spy on the Titans, gaining valuable intelligence to use against their enemy in the upcoming conflict. Rise of the New Gods When the heavily injured Ares and Hephaestus returned to camp with word of Hera's capture, the gods decided that the time they had been waiting for was now. And so, to rescue Hera, the Gods rallied their allies and made an assault on Othrys. In the melee, a great deal of ichor and blood was shed. There were gods whose names were lost to history that died on that battlefield, but in the end, the three brothers of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades took down their creator. In order to have her life spared, Rhea agreed to remove the conditioning they had placed on Aphrodite. After which, Zeus realized that Aphrodite was likely to cause a quarrel among his children, seeking to claim her as a prize for their valor in the battle. To prevent this, Aphrodite was given to Hephaestus who had been unable to fight in the battle due to his wounds. So after this, the Gods imprisoned what Titans had survived and surrendered, placing them in Tartarus, stripping them of their excess essence in the process and devying those extra powers up among the gods to fill roles that best suited their personalities and existing skills. Most of the gods agreed that Zeus should be their king and Hera, his queen, and so it was. Hades took control over the Underworld, Poseidon took domain of the seas, Demeter roamed Earth, and Hestia kept the Haven secure. Due to the heavy damage caused to the mountain of Othrys, the Gods moved the Haven to Olympus and there they set up court. Hades and Hestia both declined a seat at the Haven’s council chamber, preferring to do their jobs and stay out of politics. As King, Zeus split his time between tending to the affairs of Olympus and having affairs on Earth. He was a kind father, taking great pride in the accomplishments of his divine and heroic children. Zeus was even fond of his nephew Dionysus' creation of wine, which Zeus would come to rely on often when depressed. And so the Gods ruled on Olympus, they had their misadventures, they were worshipped, and eventually became so engrossed in their own politics and schemes that they rarely bothered to visit the mortals. They became the subjects of stories and fiction and before they knew it, they were at risk of ceasing to be. Elysium Zeus sent Hermes to search the cosmos and other dimensions, looking for a new world where the gods could start again. This sets up the events of NeOlympus. Hermes finds the new world, the Gods conquer the primitive gods that rule that world and then begin to reshape that world to suit their own needs and with their refusal to let themselves be forgotten again, the Gods make sure they spend time among the mortals, constantly performing displays of their power, wrath, and generosity so as to be remembered and advancing this civilization into the beginnings of an industrial age. But despite this, there is a recent movement in the New Nation of Thebes called the Broken Book, which is quickly becoming a heretical movement seeking to disprove the gods’ divinity… and reports come from the Underworld that the walls of Tartarus are growing weaker… and tensions are rising between the New Republic of Athens and the Imperial Regime of New Sparta, putting Ares and Athena at odds with one another and threatening to spark a war that could ravage the new world of Elysium. In Elysium, Zeus continues to rule from his throne and roam the lands in equal measure. Zeus used his time among the mortals to assess the need for seasonal change and guage his subjects loyalty. In recent days, he has become more concerned with rumors he has been hearing of the Broken Book' circulation. Role In NeOlympus Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Five Abilities Elder God: '''The sixth being endowed with Titanic essence and made immortal, Zeus had his natural charisma enhanced to paranormal levels, which he put to use as the Titans' mouthpiece. When his spirit siblings were imprisoned, Zeus went into hiding and honed his powers, until he was powerful enough to overthrow the Titans. '''Master of the Divine Throne: In the early days of Olympian reign, Zeus' efforts were awarded by giving him the throne of the Haven. When it came time to properly divide their spoils, Zeus leveraged his power (and the votes of his many, many children) to make his position permanent. With the throne, Zeus is able to strip gods of their essences and issue the divine decrees which the lesser gods and spirits are bound to obey. God of Authority: '''The first gift the Titans gave Zeus made him irresistibly charming, able to persuade mortal minds. Through practice, Zeus found a way to use his power to become a masterful shapeshifter. After overthrowing the Titans, Zeus developed the ability to grant a small token of this power to loyal mortals, allowing them to have the divine right to rule as kings so long as they reigned righteously and justly. '''God of Seasons: When Zeus struck down Kronos, the Titans' Essence of Time was damaged and became fused with Zeus. With this flawed essence, Zeus lacks the true command over time, but retains the power to determine when the seasons change. God of Weather: Zeus has full control over rain, thunder, lightning, wind and other meteorological phenomena. Zeus can even fire lightning from his hands. King of Olympus: Zeus is the anointed ruler of the Olympian Court, the chief god of the Pantheon and the master of the divine throne. Keeper of the Thunderbolt: Zeus can direct lightning through this Cyclopsian relic to magnify its power to such potency that it can smite a god with a direct hit. It is also a Divine Key, able to access the many Divine Realms. Relationships Zeus has had several relationships due to his depression over the loss of his first wife, having several consorts and several children, including his eldest daughter, Athena with Metis, three with Hera, several other younger gods, and others such as the nine muses. Zeus has a tendency to favor his daughters over his sons. Metis: Zeus' first wife, whom he loved very deeply. After he lost her, Zeus fell into a deep depression that still affects him to this day. Never having been able to recapture that love, Zeus has seduced countless men and women to try to fill that void. Hera: Zeus' second wife, whom he fell in love with years after he lost Metis. When the two married and had children, Hera's love shifted to their children, often leaving Zeus out. As a result, Zeus began having affairs once more. Unbeknownst to him, his actions nearly caused Hera to betray the gods to the Titans. The two remained married, still loving one another, but both live thier own lives. While Hera carries out her own affairs for political reasons, she is still deeply hurt by the affection he shows those he seduces. Athena: Zeus' favorite child, she is his eldest child born to his first wife Metis. Zeus presumably favors her due to her being his child with his lost wife, and has been declared heir to the throne of Olympus. Athena is often called upon by her father to assist Hermes in the most important errands. Zeus is currently trying to achieve peace between Athena and Ares. [[Ares|'Ares']], Hephaestus and Hebe: Zeus' children with Hera, the three are the only other legitimete heirs besides Athena. Ares is the General of Olympus, an unpredictable and unstable god due to the injuries her suffered at the hands of Kronos. Hephaestus is a quiet god who prefers to labor away endlessly in his forge, rather than attend social functions. Still, he manages to get along quite well with Zeus' other children, an achievement Ares does not share. Hebe, Zeus' youngest, is the most energetic of Zeus' daughters and she often enjoys the company of the other young deities such as Eros, Hermes, and Dionysus. Apollo and Hermes: There is an expression among the Elysians, one that is best not said near Hera, that "while Ares and Hephaestus are the Princes of Olympus, Zeus' only true sons are Apollo and Hermes." This expression comes from the fact they have their father's carefree attitude and charm (Hermes even more so than Apollo). Hermes is Zeus' messenger, often going on errands for his father, while Apollo takes after Zeus in most ways. Artemis: Zeus' favorite prior to Athena's discovery, Artemis grew apart from her father despite him not loving her any less. Artemis' relationship with her father has become estranged after the death of lover, Callisto. Zeus had been unaware of his daughters relationship with Callisto, and had seduced her. Hera later manipulated Artemis into discovering this, and in an attempt to kill her father, she shot Callisto. Artemis has been cold and secluded since. Trivia * While not set in NeoOlympus, Zeus' look is used for the DC Universe Earth-27 project, where he appears as the father of Diana, the heroine known as Wonder Woman. * In Greek Mythology, Zeus was the youngest biological child of Kronos and Rhea. He grew up to marry his sister Hera and have affairs with several of his other relatives (including his own children). In NeOlympus, the incest is avoided by making the Eldest Gods spiritual siblings, so there is no biological relationship, and the affairs with his own children are completely cut out. * In Mythology, Zeus transformed into Artemis to rape Callisto. This was avoided by having the affair be mutual as Zeus was unaware of Artemis' feelings. * Like the rest of the Gods, Zeus does not have a set sexuality. He does, however, seem to have a preference for women. * In Mythology, Zeus' children include Persephone and Dionysus. In NeOlympus however, Persephone is born to Poseidon and Dionysus to Hades. * In Mythology, Rhea gave Kronos a rock to swallow in order to stop Kronos from eating Zeus. In NeOlympus, Rhea gives Kronos a lookalike to throw into Tartarus. * Zeus' affairs are explained by him suffering from the loss of his first wife, Metis. Category:Elder Gods Category:Olympians Category:Principal Pantheon Category:Children of Kronos Category:Children of Rhea